Review: Dark Water, by Laura McNeal

Dark Water
By Laura McNeal
Publication Date: September 10th, 2010 (Alfred A. Knopf)
Hardcover, 287 pages
Genre: Contemporary; Romance; YA
Source: Library

DESCRIPTION:

Fifteen-year old Pearl DeWitt and her mother live in Fallbrook, California, where it's sunny 340 days of the year , and where her uncle owns a grove of 900 avocado trees. Uncle Hoyt hires migrant workers regularly, but Pearl doesn't pay much attention to them...until Amiel. From the moment she sees him, Pearl is drawn to this boy who keeps to himself, fears being caught by la migra, and is mysteriously unable to talk. And after coming across Amiel's makeshift hut near Agua Prieta Creek, Pearl falls into a precarious friendship—and a forbidden romance.

Then the wildfires strike. Fallbrook—the town of marigolds and palms, blood oranges and sweet limes—is threatened by the Agua Prieta fire, and a mandatory evacuation order is issued. But Pearl knows that Amiel is right in the path of the fire, with no one to wan him, no way to get out. Slipping away from the safety and her family, Pearl moves towards the creek, where the smoke has become air, the air smoke.

-from goodreads.com

REVIEW: 

When I read the synopsis, I expected a story about the undying, star-crossed love of an illegal migrant worker, Amiel, and his employer's niece, Pearl. I anticipated a bunch of things to happen based on this but none of them came true because what started off as star-crossed love was twisted by the author, Laura McNeal, resulting a in a unique and offbeat (in a good way) story.

Even though Dark Water wasn't what I was expecting, I was pleasantly surprised when the book turned out to be so much more than a romance—in fact, it was mostly a story about family.

Still, I feel like the book description is a essentially a synopsis of Dark Water; not much more than what the book description says happened, besides a few fillers and a bitter ending. When I think about the way the description gives the whole story away, it makes me wonder if the story is even suppose to be about Pearl and Amiel...

Pearl's personality was unique and reflected the decisions she made when conflict arose, but I don't feel like she changed any. I liked Amiel best though, mostly because his character was different from the YA romance fiction I've read where the male love interest is (in short) a sensitive jerk (which makes no sense to me). Amiel was quiet, broken, and compassionate, which equals lovable in my calculations.

If you read this, don't expect a big soap opera where Amiel is almost deported, but Pearl marries him to keep him in The United States, and they live happily ever after, because this isn't that story. 

Dark Water is, more than anything, about the price of foolishness.

RATING: